At issue is whether New Jersey’s three Hudson River crossings — the George Washington Bridge and the Lincoln and Holland tunnels — will be treated the same way when New York’s new congestion pricing program goes into effect in several years. | AP Photo

Murphy insists he has ‘understanding’ with Cuomo on Manhattan tolls

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy insisted Thursday he had a “conceptual understanding” with New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo about how Hudson River crossings will be treated under a new plan to toll drivers in the busiest parts of Manhattan.

After Pat Foye, Cuomo’s hand-picked chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, said Wednesday evening that he had “no idea” what Murphy was talking about, the New Jersey governor doubled down on his claims.

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“My comments are based explicitly on principle-to-principle discussion with Governor Cuomo,” Murphy said at a press conference Thursday afternoon in Trenton. “As I said, it’s a conceptual understanding.”

At issue is whether New Jersey’s three Hudson River crossings — the George Washington Bridge and the Lincoln and Holland tunnels — will be treated the same way when New York’s new congestion pricing program goes into effect in several years.

Murphy told reporters on Wednesday he has an understanding with Cuomo that New Jersey commuters will be treated equally at all three crossings. Transit advocates interpreted the deal to mean drivers who use those crossings will receive credit for the tolls they paid, offsetting the new charges to enter Manhattan’s new congestion pricing zone, which will cover the area south of 60th Street.

The legislation authorizing congestion pricing did not explicitly mention any credits for the Holland and Lincoln tunnels, but both tubes feed directly into the congestion pricing zone, and many assumed they'd get such a carve-out.

The George Washington Bridge, however, empties into Manhattan far north of the congestion pricing zone, and there's been uncertainty about whether commuters using the bridge would be credited.

Two people who were involved in the discussions with Cuomo were explicit on Wednesday, when POLITICO was the first to report on the issue, saying Murphy and his staff had reached an agreement with Cuomo on the issue.

In exchange, Murphy agreed to allow the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey — which he jointly controls with Cuomo — to move forward with cashless tolling. Without the technology, the MTA will not be able to give credit to drivers who enter the congestion pricing zone after using those bridges and tunnels.

But Foye, who is also CEO of the MTA and a long-time Cuomo loyalist, denied there was any sort of deal between the states, noting all decisions are to be made by a panel within the MTA called the Traffic Mobility Review Board.

“No agreement has been reached with New Jersey or anyone else on credits, exemptions or carveouts because the MTA will determine the Central Business District tolls and other terms once the Traffic Mobility Review Board has made its recommendations and traffic and congestion analyses are completed,” Foye said in a statement distributed late Wednesday.

Murphy said his chief of staff, George Helmy, had since spoken to Foye about the issue.

“We will stand strong and make sure that New Jersey commuters are protected, period, full-stop, and not be asked to pay twice and not be discriminated against,” Murphy said.

Asked explicitly if there was really a deal, Murphy said, “Conceptual understanding is the words I’ve used and I’ll continue to use.”